I remember arriving here in London in early May. The British summer had also just arrived and as we took our first stroll through Hyde Park, I noticed with amusement many groups of locals in their bikinis and Speedos, desperately trying to suck up...

Late on a rainy afternoon in Barcelona, my boyfriend and I are stirred from our siesta by a very familiar song coming from the Spanish music channel playing in our hotel room. I'm sure I must be hearing things until I see the friendly faces of...

In the heart of the unfinished building there's plain, cold concrete floors, waylaid builders' tools, scaffolding reaching for the very tall ceiling. There are leaks where the rain is coming through and wooden planks to step on to keep shoes...

This is no Air New Zealand. There are no immaculate air hostesses who look like Catherine Zeta Jones. There are no hot meals halfway to Sydney or teeny tubs of locally-made ice cream. There's no curtain separating the 'classy' passengers...